Enhanced Measurement Filtering Configurations for Radio-Link Management and Radio Resource Management

ABSTRACT

A wireless device is configured to perform measurements for radio resource management (RRM) and/or radio link monitoring (RLM). The wireless device performs a plurality of radio measurements. The wireless device filters at least a first subset of the radio measurements using a first filtering configuration and filters at least a second subset of the radio measurements using a second filtering configuration, where the second filtering configuration differs from the first filtering configuration. The first and second filtering configurations apply to first and second different types of reference signals, respectively, or to beam-level measurements and cell-level measurements, respectively.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure is generally related to wireless communicationsand is more particularly related to performing and filtering radiomeasurements for radio link monitoring (RLM) and/or radio resourcemanagement (RRM).

BACKGROUND

For wireless communications networks compliant with the specificationsfor Long-Term Evolution (LTE) networks, the 3^(rd)-GenerationPartnership Project (3GPP) has defined a so-called measurement model, in3GPP TS 36.300, v. 14.3.0 (June 2017) (hereinafter referred to as“36.300”), as a way to summarize how a user equipment (UE) performradio-resource management (RRM) measurements to be used as input to theevaluation of measurement reports and to be reported to the network,e.g., to assist handover decisions. FIG. 1, which is adapted from FIGS.10.6-1 of 36.300, summarizes the measurement model in LTE. Thecomponents and parameters shown in FIG. 1 are described in 36.300 asfollows:

-   -   A: measurements (samples) internal to the physical layer.    -   Layer 1 filtering: internal layer 1 filtering of the inputs        measured at point A. Exact filtering is implementation        dependent. How the measurements are actually executed in the        physical layer by an implementation (inputs A and Layer 1        filtering) in not constrained by the standard.    -   B: A measurement reported by layer 1 to layer 3 after layer 1        filtering.    -   Layer 3 filtering: Filtering performed on the measurements        provided at point B. The behaviour of the Layer 3 filters is        standardised and the configuration of the layer 3 filters is        provided by RRC signalling. Filtering reporting period at C        equals one measurement period at B.    -   C: A measurement after processing in the layer 3 filter. The        reporting rate is identical to the reporting rate at point B.        This measurement is used as input for one or more evaluation of        reporting criteria.    -   Evaluation of reporting criteria: This checks whether actual        measurement reporting is necessary at point D. The evaluation        can be based on more than one flow of measurements at reference        point C, such as to compare between different measurements. This        is illustrated by inputs C and C′. The UE shall evaluate the        reporting criteria at least every time a new measurement result        is reported at point C, C′. The reporting criteria are        standardised and the configuration is provided by RRC signalling        (UE measurements).    -   D: Measurement report information (message) sent on the radio        interface.

According to 36.300, in LTE, the Layer 1 filtering 100 will introduce acertain level of measurement averaging. How and when the UE exactlyperforms the required measurements will be implementation-specific tothe point that the output at B fulfils the performance requirements setin 3GPP TS 36.133 (“Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA);“Requirements for support of radio resource management”). Layer 3filtering 110 and parameters used are specified in 3GPP TS 36.331(“Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); Radio ResourceControl (RRC) protocol specification”); this filtering does notintroduce any delay in the sample availability between B and C.Measurements at point C, C′ are the inputs used in the event evaluation120. One of the reasons to specify the configuration described above isto align different implementations of Layer 1 (L1) filters.

In LTE, the Layer 3 (L3) filter coefficients are provided as part of theso-called quantity configuration, defined in 3GPP TS 36.331, v. 14.3.0(June 2017) (hereinafter referred to as “36.331”) as follows:

-   -   4. Quantity configurations: One quantity configuration is        configured per RAT type. The quantity configuration defines the        measurement quantities and associated filtering used for all        event evaluation and related reporting of that measurement type.        One filter can be configured per measurement quantity.    -   . . .

In LTE, an information element (IE) named quantityConfig is defined. TheIE is transmitted as part of the measurement configuration. The UEactions in the specifications are defined as follows:

-   -   . . .    -   1> if the received measConfig includes the quantityConfig:        -   2> perform the quantity configuration procedure as specified            in 5.5.2.8;    -   . . .

5.5.2.8 Quantity Configuration

The UE shall:

-   -   1> for each RAT for which the received quantityConfig includes        parameter(s):        -   2> set the corresponding parameter(s) in quantityConfig            within            -   VarMeasConfig to the value of the received                quantityConfig parameter(s);    -   1> for each measId included in the measIdList within        VarMeasConfig:        -   2> remove the measurement reporting entry for this measId            from the VarMeasReportList, if included;        -   2> stop the periodical reporting timer or timer T321,            whichever one is running, and reset the associated            information (e.g., timeToTrigger) for this measId;    -   . . .

Details about the L3 filtering are also specified in the RRCspecifications as follows:

5.5.3.2 Layer 3 Filtering

The UE shall:

-   -   1> for each measurement quantity that the UE performs        measurements according to 5.5.3.1:    -   NOTE 1: This does not include quantities configured solely for        UE Rx-Tx time difference, SSTD measurements and RSSI, channel        occupancy measurements, WLAN measurements of Band, Carrier Info,        Available Admission Capacity, Backhaul Bandwidth, Channel        Utilization, and Station Count, CBR measurement, and UL PDCP        Packet Delay per QCI measurement i.e., for those types of        measurements the UE ignores the trigger Quantity and report        Quantity.        -   2> filter the measured result, before using for evaluation            of reporting criteria or for measurement reporting, by the            following formula:

F _(n)=(1−a)·F _(n−1) +a·M _(n)

-   -   -   where            -   M_(n) is the latest received measurement result from the                physical layer;            -   F_(n) is the updated filtered measurement result, that                is used for evaluation of reporting criteria or for                measurement reporting;            -   F_(n−1) is the old filtered measurement result, where F₀                is set to M₁ when the first measurement result from the                physical layer is received; and            -   a=1/2^((k/4)), where k is the filterCoefficient for the                corresponding measurement quantity received by the                quantityConfig;        -   2> adapt the filter such that the time characteristics of            the filter are preserved at different input rates, observing            that the filterCoefficient k assumes a sample rate equal to            200 ms;

    -   NOTE 2: If k is set to 0, no layer 3 filtering is applicable.

    -   NOTE 3: The filtering is performed in the same domain as used        for evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement        reporting, i.e., logarithmic filtering for logarithmic        measurements.

    -   NOTE 4: The filter input rate is implementation dependent, to        fulfil the performance requirements set in [16]. For further        details about the physical layer measurements, see TS 36.133        [16].

    -   . . .

The IE MeasConfig specifies measurements to be performed by the UE, andcovers intra-frequency, inter-frequency and inter-RAT mobility as wellas configuration of measurement gaps. This IE is defined in 3GPPspecifications as follows:

MeasConfig information element -- ASN1START MeasConfig ::= SEQUENCE { --Measurement objects measObjectToRemoveList MeasObjectToRemoveListOPTIONAL, --Need ON measObjectToAddModList MeasObjectToAddModListOPTIONAL, --Need ON -- Reporting configurations reportConfigToRemoveListReportConfigToRemoveList OPTIONAL, --Need ON reportConfigToAddModListReportConfigToAddModList OPTIONAL, --Need ON -- Measurement identitiesmeasIdToRemoveList MeasIdToRemoveList OPTIONAL, --Need ONmeasIdToAddModList MeasIdToAddModList OPTIONAL, --Need ON -- Otherparameters quantityConfig QuantityConfig OPTIONAL, -- Need ON . . . --ASN1STOP

The IE QuantityConfig specifies the measurement quantities and layer 3filtering coefficients for E-UTRA and inter-RAT measurements. This IE isdefined in 3GPP specifications as follows:

QuantityConfig information element -- ASN1START QuantityConfig ::=SEQUENCE { quantityConfigEUTRA QuantityConfigEUTRA OPTIONAL, --Need ON .. . } . . . QuantityConfigEUTRA ::= SEQUENCE { filterCoefficientRSRPFilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4, filterCoefficientRSRQ FilterCoefficientDEFAULT fc4 } QuantityConfigEUTRA-v1250 ::= SEQUENCE {filterCoefficientCSI-RSRP-r12 FilterCoefficient OPTIONAL -- Need OR }QuantityConfigEUTRA-v1310 ::= SEQUENCE { filterCoefficientRS-SINR-r13FilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4 } ... -- ASN1STOP

As for QuantityConfig field descriptions: filterCoefficientCSI-RSRPspecifies the filtering coefficient used for CSI-RSRP;filterCoefficientRSRP specifies the filtering coefficient used for RSRP;filterCoefficientRSRQ specifies the filtering coefficient used for RSRQ;filterCoefficientRS-SINR specifies the filtering coefficient used forRS-SINR; and quantityConfigEUTRA specifies filter configurations for EUTRA measurements.

The IE FilterCoefficient specifies the measurement filteringcoefficient. Value fc0 corresponds to k=0, fc1 corresponds to k=1, andso on. This IE is defined in 3GPP specifications as follows:

FilterCoefficient information element -- ASN1START FilterCoefficient ::=ENUMERATED { fc0, fc1, fc2, fc3, fc4, fc5, fc6, fc7, fc8, fc9, fc11,fc13, fc15, fc17, fc19, spare1, ...} -- ASN1STOP

The legacy radio link monitoring procedure is carried out inRRC_CONNECTED state by the UE. (For the purposes of this document, theterm “legacy” is used to refer to standardized processes and proceduresas of Release 14 of the 3GPP specifications, and earlier.) The purposeof radio link monitoring (RLM) is to monitor the downlink radio linkquality of the connected serving cell and use that information to decidewhether the UE is in in-sync or out-of-sync with respect to that servingcell. In legacy RLM procedures, the UE estimates the signal quality ofthe downlink reference signal (e.g., cell-specific reference symbols(CRS) in LTE) of the serving cell and compares the estimated signalquality with hypothetical control channel quality targets (e.g.,physical downlink control channel block error rate (PDCCH BLER)targets). There are two control channel quality targets (e.g., BLERtargets), namely Qin and Qout. Qout corresponds to a 10% hypotheticalBLER of the control channel (e.g., PDCCH) and Qin corresponds to 2%hypothetical BLER of the control channel (e.g., PDCCH channel). Thesequality thresholds are used to determine whether the UE is in-sync orout-of-sync with respect to the serving cell.

The RLM procedure in LTE also has a filtering configuration that aims toavoid an RLF declaration (which triggers RRC signaling and costly UEactions) upon a quick drop in radio condition. Although the purpose issomewhat similar to the filtering applied to avoid too frequent triggerof measurement reports, the configuration of this filtering mechanism isdifferent, being based on the parameters N310 and N311 (instead of thetime-domain filtering coefficients in the RRM measurement model). ForRLM, the UE starts the radio link failure timer T310 when N310consecutive out-of-sync indications are reached, and stops this timerwhen N311 consecutive in-sync indications are reached. Upon expiry ofthe T310 timer, the UE declares RLF and turns off the transmitter. Theparameters N310, N311 and T310 are configured by the network node. Theparameters N310 and N311 are used by the UE for performing higher layertime-domain average and are also interchangeably referred to ashigher-layer filtering parameters, layer-3 filtering parameters, etc.

In discussions and documentation for the fifth-generation wirelesssystem currently under development by the 3GPP, the radio accesstechnology (RAT) may be referred to as “New Radio,” or “NR,” or “NRRadio Access.” Stage 2 specifications for NR, which comprise an overalldescription of NR and the so-called Next Generation Radio Access Network(NG-RAN), have been released in 3GPP TS 38.300, v. 1.0.0 (September2017) (hereinafter referred to as 38.300); the background describedherein may be familiar to the person of ordinary skill in the art.

In NR, an NR primary synchronization signal (NR-PSS), an NR secondarysynchronization signal (NR-SSS), and an NR physical broadcast channel(NR-PBCH) are expected to be transmitted together, in a synchronizationsignal block (SS block). For a given frequency band, an SS blockcorresponds to N OFDM symbols based on the default subcarrier spacing,where the N symbols contain NR-PSS, NR-SSS, and NR-PBCH e.g., N=4. Theposition(s) of actual transmitted SS-blocks can be informed to the UEfor helping CONNECTED/IDLE mode measurement, for helping a CONNECTEDmode UE to receive downlink data/control in unused SS-blocks, andpotentially for helping IDLE mode UE to receive downlink data/control inunused SS-blocks. One or multiple SS block(s) make up an SS burst set.The maximum number of SS-blocks, L, within a SS burst set is dependenton carrier frequency of the cell. The maximum number of SS-blocks withina SS burst set, L, for each of several different frequency ranges is asfollows: for frequency range up to 3 GHz, L=4; for frequency range from3 GHz to 6 GHz, L=8; and for frequency range from 6 GHz to 52.6 GHz,L=64.

A certain minimum number of SS blocks transmitted within each SS burstset will be used to define UE measurement performance requirements.

The transmission of SS blocks within an SS burst set is confined to a5-millisecond window, regardless of SS burst set periodicity. Withinthis 5-millisecond window, the number of possible candidate SS blocklocations is L (as described above). The SS blocks within the same SSburst set in a cell may or may not be contiguous in time.

Aspects of NR are beam-based, rather than cell-based, where a givenaccess point (referred to as a gNB, in NR documentation), may transmitmultiple beam-formed beams, using antenna arrays. Network controlledmobility in NR thus comprises two types of mobility: cell-level mobilityand beam-level mobility, as discussed in 38.300. RLM and RRM measurementtechniques have not been fully specified for NR.

SUMMARY

According to several embodiments of the techniques described herein, thenetwork node (e.g., gNB, base station, access point, etc.) can configurethe UE with a measurement filtering configuration with different levelsof granularity for different reference signal (RS) types for beam-levelmeasurements and cell-level measurements. Embodiments also comprisefiltering differentiation for single-beam and multi-beam networkconfigurations.

A filtering configuration parameter (e.g., coefficient of layer-3filter) for beam-level measurements may further depend upon the beamconfiguration (e.g., number of beams to be measured, number of SS blockswithin the SS burst set, etc.), in some embodiments.

Embodiments may thus involve the use of different measurement (ormeasurement indications) filtering configurations for: cell level vsbeam level configurations and RS Type. Measurement (or measurementindication) filtering configurations may relate to one or both of: timedomain filtering of RRM measurements used as input for report triggeringevaluation; and RLF related parameters (NR-N310, NR-311, RLF timers,maximum number of beam recovery attempts, etc.)

In various embodiments, the UE determines a measurements filteringconfiguration for an NR measurement based on at least one of: a receivedmessage from a network node and pre-defined rule.

According to some embodiments, a method, in a wireless device, ofperforming measurements for radio RRM and/or RLM, includes performing aplurality of radio measurements. The method also includes filtering atleast a first subset of the radio measurements using a first filteringconfiguration and filtering at least a second subset of the radiomeasurements using a second filtering configuration, the secondfiltering configuration differing from the first filteringconfiguration. The first and second filtering configurations apply tofirst and second different types of reference signals, respectively, orto beam-level measurements and cell-level measurements, respectively.

According to some embodiments, a method, in at least one network node ofa wireless communication network, of facilitating measurements for RRMand/or RLM, includes sending, to a wireless device, informationindicating a first filtering configuration for RRM and/or RLM and asecond filtering configuration for RRM and/or RLM, the second filteringconfiguration differing from the first filtering configuration. Thefirst and second filtering configurations apply to first and seconddifferent types of reference signals, respectively, or to beam-levelmeasurements and cell-level measurements, respectively.

According to some embodiments, a wireless device configured forperforming measurements for radio RRM and/or RLM includes transceivercircuitry configured to transmit and receive radio signals andprocessing circuitry operatively associated with the transceivercircuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to perform a pluralityof radio measurements, filter at least a first subset of the radiomeasurements using a first filtering configuration, and filter at leasta second subset of the radio measurements using a second filteringconfiguration, where the second filtering configuration differs from thefirst filtering configuration. The first and second filteringconfigurations apply to first and second different types of referencesignals, respectively, or to beam-level measurements and cell-levelmeasurements, respectively.

According to some embodiments, at least one network node of a wirelesscommunication network configured for facilitating measurements for RRMand/or RLM includes transceiver circuitry configured to communicate witha wireless device and processing circuitry operatively associated withthe transceiver circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured tosend, to the wireless device via transceiver circuitry, informationindicating a first filtering configuration for RRM and/or RLM and asecond filtering configuration for RRM and/or RLM, the second filteringconfiguration differing from the first filtering configuration. Thefirst and second filtering configurations apply to first and seconddifferent types of reference signals, respectively, or to beam-levelmeasurements and cell-level measurements, respectively.

Additional embodiments may include the method implemented by apparatus,devices, network nodes, computer readable medium, computer programproducts and functional implementations.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the above featuresand advantages. Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognizeadditional features and advantages upon reading the following detaileddescription, and upon viewing the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 illustrates a measurement model in LTE.

FIG. 2 illustrates a high-level measurement model.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a wireless device, according tosome embodiments.

FIG. 4 shows a flow chart illustrating a method at a wireless device forperforming measurements for RRM and/or RLM, according to someembodiments.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a network node of a wirelesscommunication network, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 6 shows a flow chart illustrating a method at a source node forfacilitating measurements for RRM and/or RLM, according to someembodiments.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a functional implementation of awireless device, according to some embodiments.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a functional implementation of anetwork node, according to some embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

For the case of RRM measurements in NR, the following measurement modelhas been captured in TS 38.300. In RRC_CONNECTED state, the UE measuresmultiple beams (at least one) of a cell and the measurements results(power values) are averaged to derive the cell quality. In doing so, theUE is configured to consider a subset of the detected beams: the bestand the N−1 best beams above a configurable absolute threshold. Thenetwork can also configure the UE to perform Layer 3 (L3)-filteredbeam-level measurements to be included in measurement reports. Thecorresponding high-level measurement model is illustrated in FIG. 2,which is adapted from FIG. 9.2.4-1 of TS 38.300. The components andparameters illustrated in this measurement model are described in TS38.300 as follows:

-   -   NOTE: K beams correspond to the measurements on NR-SS block or        CSI-RS resources configured for L3 mobility by gNB and detected        by UE at L1.        -   A: measurements (beam-specific samples) internal to the            physical layer.        -   Layer 1 filtering: internal layer-1 filtering of the inputs            measured at point A. Exact filtering is implementation            dependent. How the measurements are actually executed in the            physical layer by an implementation (inputs A and Layer 1            filtering) is not constrained by the standard.        -   A¹: measurements (i.e., beam-specific measurements) reported            by layer 1 to layer 3 after layer 1 filtering.        -   Beam Consolidation/Selection: beam-specific measurements are            consolidated to derive cell quality if N>1, else when N=1            the best beam measurement is selected to derive cell            quality. The behaviour of the Beam consolidation/selection            is standardised, and the configuration of this module is            provided by RRC signalling. Reporting period at B equals one            measurement period at A¹.        -   B: a measurement (i.e., cell quality) derived from            beam-specific measurements reported to layer 3 after beam            consolidation/selection.        -   Layer 3 filtering for cell quality: filtering performed on            the measurements provided at point B. The behaviour of the            Layer 3 filters is standardised, and the configuration of            the layer 3 filters is provided by RRC signalling. Filtering            reporting period at C equals one measurement period at B.        -   C: a measurement after processing in the layer 3 filter. The            reporting rate is identical to the reporting rate at            point B. This measurement is used as input for one or more            evaluation of reporting criteria.        -   Evaluation of reporting criteria: checks whether actual            measurement reporting is necessary at point D. The            evaluation can be based on more than one flow of            measurements at reference point C e.g., to compare between            different measurements. This is illustrated by input C and            C¹. The UE shall evaluate the reporting criteria at least            every time a new measurement result is reported at point C,            C¹. The reporting criteria are standardised and the            configuration is provided by RRC signalling (UE            measurements).        -   D: measurement report information (message) sent on the            radio interface.        -   L3 Beam filtering: filtering performed on the measurements            (i.e., beam-specific measurements) provided at point A¹. The            behaviour of the beam filters is standardised and the            configuration of the beam filters is provided by RRC            signalling. Filtering reporting period at E equals one            measurement period at A¹.        -   E: a measurement (i.e., beam-specific measurement) after            processing in the beam filter. The reporting rate is            identical to the reporting rate at point A¹. This            measurement is used as input for selecting the X            measurements to be reported.    -   Beam Selection for beam reporting: selects the X measurements        from the measurements provided at point E. The behaviour of the        beam selection is standardised and the configuration of this        module is provided by RRC signalling.    -   F: beam measurement information included in measurement report        (sent) on the radio interface.

As discussed in TS 38.300, Layer 1 filtering 210 introduces a certainlevel of measurement averaging. How and when the UE exactly performs therequired measurements is implementation-specific to the point that theoutput at B fulfills the performance requirements set in 3GPP TS 38.133.Beam consolidation/selection is shown by block 210. Layer 3 filtering230 for cell quality and related parameters used are specified in 3GPPTS 38.331, and does not introduce any delay in the sample availabilitybetween B and C. Measurement at point C, C1 is the input used in theevent evaluation 240. L3 Beam filtering 220 and related parameters usedare specified in 3GPP TS 38.331, and do not introduce any delay in thesample availability between E and F. Beam selection for reporting isshown by block 230.

For the case of RLM measurements, TS 38.300 says that in RRC_CONNECTEDstate, the UE declares RLF when one of the following criteria are met:expiry of a timer started after indication of radio problems from thephysical layer (if radio problems are recovered before the timer isexpired, the UE stops the timer); random access procedure failure; andRLC failure. For future study is whether indications related to beamfailure recovery may affect the declaration of RLF.

After RLF is declared, the UE: stays in RRC_CONNECTED; selects asuitable cell and then initiates RRC re-establishment; and entersRRC_IDLE if a suitable cell was not found within a certain time afterRLF was declared.

In dual connectivity (DC), RLF is declared separately for the mastercell group (MCG) and for the secondary cell group (SCG). The actionsfollowing RLF described above only apply for RLF on the MCG. After RLFon the SCG, the UE stops normal operation on the SCG and reports thefailure to the network.

One can notice that in NR, differently from LTE, new aspects are to beconsidered to complete the measurement model, RLM configuration.Filtering configurations may be captured in the RRC specifications: 1)the UE can be configured to perform L3-filtered beam-level RRMmeasurements to be included in measurement reports; and 2) the UE can beconfigured to perform RRM measurements based on SS Blocks (CSI-RS) orboth. The UE may be requested to report cell-level measurement and/orbeam-level measurements. 3) The UE can be configured to perform RLMbased on NR-SS or CSI-RS, i.e., RLF can be triggered based on the radioconditions measured based on of different reference signals, which couldhave quite different properties (considering they can be beamformedquite differently). In addition, there are currently no specified rulesor signaling on how to configure UE measurement filtering for NR.

Embodiments described herein address these issues. According to severalembodiments of the techniques described herein, for example, the networknode (e.g., gNB, base station, access point, etc.) can configure the UEwith a measurement filtering configuration with different levels ofgranularity for different reference signal (RS) types for beam-levelmeasurements and cell-level measurements. Embodiments may also includefiltering differentiation for single-beam and multi-beam networkconfigurations.

A filtering configuration parameter (e.g., coefficient of Layer 3filter) for beam-level measurements may further depend upon the beamconfiguration (e.g., number of beams to be measured, number of SS blockswithin the SS burst set, etc.), in some embodiments.

Several advantages may be obtained with one or more of the enclosedembodiments. In the case of RRM measurements, by introducing theflexibility enabled by the techniques described herein, the network canconfigure beam-level measurements with different filter coefficients,compared to cell-level measurements. For example, the network may beinterested to trigger handovers based on stable measurements; hence, itwould set filter coefficients with longer memory, compared to beammeasurements, whose memory may be important or not depending on thepurpose of these measurements. For ping-pong avoidance, for example, thenetwork may be interested to know the latest beams the UE can detect,however, for dedicated RACH allocation per beam, stable measurementsmight be preferred. Notice that another advantage could be that the UEcould report these measurements with different filter coefficients.

When it comes to configuring different coefficients for different RStypes, for cell level or beam-level measurements, an advantage of someof the techniques described herein is that the level of beamforming ofthese different RS Types can be quite different. That may affect thestability of the measurements, too, since, for example, the SS Blockmight be transmitted in wide beams (or even omnidirectional), whilenarrow beams carry CSI-RS.

For RLM-related measurements or measurement indications, the network canconfigure different values for CSI-RS and SS Block, for example. Ifnarrow beams are deployed, there will be more situations where a deepsignal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) is detected and, thenetwork may not want the UE to declare RLF based on these. Hence, it canmake sense to have longer filtering. Similar for SS Block, where thenetwork may want the UE to act faster, as that may be correlated withthe basic coverage of common control channels of the serving cell.Signaling overhead may also be reduced in some cases.

“Filtering,” in the context of the present disclosure, may includetime-domain filtering of RRM measurements used as input to theevaluation of measurement report triggering criteria. In that case,filter coefficients can be configured, e.g., fc1 for the latestmeasurement result and fc2 for the previously filtered measurementresults, such as reference signal received power (RSRP), referencesignal received quality (RSRQ), or SINR. In this case, embodiments mayinclude different filter coefficients configured per RS Types, as theymay have quite different beamforming properties or different configuredvalues for cell level and beam-level measurements.

Filtering may also include RLF-related filtering parameters such as thethreshold like NR-N310 for the number of out-of-sync indications thattriggers the RLF timer. The network can set the value of that thresholdhigher than 1 to avoid a quick deep measurement result to trigger theRLF timer too early. RLF-related filtering parameters may also includevalues for the RLF timer. A longer timer allows the network to have morecertainty that conditions are likely not possible to be recovered,hence, in a broader sense it can be seen as a filtering configuration.RLF-related filtering parameters may include the threshold like NR-N311for the number of in-sync indications that can stop the RLF timer. Thenetwork can set the value of that threshold higher than 1 to avoid aquick stop of the RLF timer, to only do that when there is some level ofcertainty that the link has really recovered. RLF-related parameters mayalso include the threshold on the maximum number of beam failurerecovery attempts that could be configured to trigger RLF. The networkcan set the value of that threshold higher than 1 to avoid a too fasttriggering of RLF or the RLF timer. This can be different for CSI-RSbased RLM compared to SS Block based RLM. In the case of these RLFfiltering parameters (timer, NR-N310, NR-311, etc.), different valuescoefficients can be configured per RS Type, as they may have quitedifferent beamforming properties or different configured values for celllevel and beam-level measurements.

Some embodiments might be considered to be more closely related thanothers to the configuration of RRM measurements. As noted above, thetechniques described herein include methods where the network node(e.g., serving gNB) can configure the UE with filtering configurationswith different levels of granularity for beam-level measurements andcell-level measurements.

In a first embodiment, for example, the network node can configure theUE with different filtering configurations for beam-level measurementsbased on a first type of reference signal (RS1) (e.g., CSI-RS) andbeam-level measurements based on a second type of a reference signal(RS2) (e.g., SS Blocks). In other words, the filtering configuration canbe provided per RS Type for beam-level measurements.

In a second embodiment, the network node can configure the UE with asingle configuration for beam-level measurements that is valid foreither RS1 (e.g., CSI-RS) or RS2 (e.g., SS Blocks) based measurements.That can still be different compared to cell-level filteringconfiguration.

In a third embodiment, the network node can configure the UE withfiltering configuration with different levels of granularity forcell-level measurements based on RS1 (e.g., CSI-RS) and cell-levelmeasurements based on RS1 (e.g., SS Blocks) that can still be differentcompared to a beam-level filtering configuration.

In a fourth embodiment, the network node can configure the UE with asingle configuration for cell-level measurements that is valid foreither RS1 (e.g., CSI-RS) or RS1 (e.g., SS Blocks) based measurements.That can still be different compared to a beam-level filteringconfiguration.

In some embodiments, a combination of the abovementioned embodiments isimplemented. For example, for the highest flexibility, one could have adifferent filter configuration per RS type and for beam and cellmeasurement results. In that case, one way to encode the embodiments inthe specifications is just by indicating that the filter coefficientscan be different for beam/cell measurement results and based on RS1 orRS2 (e.g., SS Block/CSI-RS) based measurement results, as follows. Notethat this and the following examples are based on modifications ofexisting 3GPP specifications.

5.5.3.2 Layer 3 Filtering

The UE shall:

-   -   1> for each measurement quantity that the UE performs        measurements according to 5.5.3.1:        -   2> filter the measured result, before using for evaluation            of reporting criteria or for measurement reporting, by the            following formula:

F _(n)=(1−a)·F _(n−1) +a·M _(n)

-   -   -   where            -   M_(n) is the latest received measurement result from the                physical layer (in the case of beam measurement results)                or beam consolidation function (in the case of cell                measurement results);            -   F_(n) is the updated filtered measurement result, that                is used for evaluation of reporting criteria (in the                case of cell measurement results) or for measurement                reporting (in the case of cell and beam measurement                results);            -   F_(n−1) is the old filtered measurement result, where F₀                is set to M₁ when the first measurement result from the                physical layer or beam consolidation function is                received; and            -   a=1/2^((k/4)), where k is the filterCoefficient for the                corresponding measurement quantity received by the                quantityConfig. There can be different parameter k for                cell measurement results and beam measurements results.                There can also be different parameter k for measurement                results based on SS Block and CSI-RS;            -   2> adapt the filter such that the time characteristics                of the filter are preserved at different input rates,                observing that the filterCoefficient k assumes a sample                rate equal to 200 ms;

    -   NOTE 2: If k is set to 0, no layer 3 filtering is applicable.

    -   NOTE 3: The filtering is performed in the same domain as used        for evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement        reporting, i.e., logarithmic filtering for logarithmic        measurements.

    -   NOTE 4: The filter input rate is implementation dependent, to        fulfil the performance requirements set in [16]. For further        details about the physical layer measurements, see TS 36.133        [16].”

    -   NOTE 5: There can be different parameter k for cell measurement        results and beam measurements results.

    -   NOTE 6: There can be different parameter k for cell measurement        results and beam measurements results.

Another possible way to capture these in the 3GPP RRC specifications, asbelow, is by separating the functions for cell and beam measurementresults, and, in each of them, indicating that filter coefficients forSS Block and CSI-RS measurement results can be different.

5.5.3.2.1 Layer 3 Filtering of Cell Measurement Results

The UE shall:

-   -   1> for each cell measurement quantity that the UE performs        measurements according to 5.5.3.1:        -   2> filter the cell measured result, before using for            evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement            reporting, by the following formula:

F _(n)=(1−a)·F _(n−1) +a·M _(n)

-   -   where    -   M_(n) is the latest received measurement result from the beam        consolidation/selection (cell quality derivation) function as        defined in 5.5.x.y;    -   F_(n) is the updated filtered cell measurement result, that is        used for evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement        reporting;    -   F_(n−1) is the old filtered cell measurement result, where F₀ is        set to M₁ when the first measurement result from the beam        consolidation/selection (cell quality derivation) function as        defined in 5.5.x.y is received; and    -   a=1/2(k/4), where k is the filterCoefficient for the        corresponding cell measurement quantity received by the        quantityConfig, where k can be configured differently for cell        measurement results based on SS Block and CSI-RS;        -   2> adapt the filter such that the time characteristics of            the filter are preserved at different input rates, observing            that the filterCoefficient k assumes a sample rate equal to            200 ms;    -   NOTE 2: If k is set to 0, no layer 3 filtering is applicable.    -   NOTE 3: The filtering is performed in the same domain as used        for evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement        reporting, i.e., logarithmic filtering for logarithmic        measurements.    -   NOTE 4: The filter input rate is implementation dependent, to        fulfil the performance requirements set in [16]. For further        details about the physical layer measurements, see TS 36.133        [16].

5.5.3.2.2 Layer 3 Filtering of Beam Measurement Results

The UE shall:

-   -   1> for each beam measurement quantity that the UE performs        measurements according to 5.5.3.1:        -   2> filter the beam measured result, before using for            measurement reporting, by the following formula:

F _(n)=(1−a)·F _(n−1) +a·M _(n)

-   -   where    -   M_(n) is the latest received measurement result from the        physical layer;    -   F_(n) is the updated filtered beam measurement result, that is        used for measurement reporting;    -   F_(n−1) is the old filtered beam measurement result, where F₀ is        set to M₁ when the first measurement result from the physical        layer is received; and    -   a=1/2(k/4), where k is the filterCoefficient for the        corresponding beam measurement quantity received by the        quantityConfig, where k can be configured differently for beam        measurement results based on SS Block and CSI-RS;        -   2> adapt the filter such that the time characteristics of            the filter are preserved at different input rates, observing            that the filterCoefficient k assumes a sample rate equal to            200 ms;    -   NOTE 2: If k is set to 0, no layer 3 filtering is applicable.    -   NOTE 3: The filtering is performed in the same domain as used        for evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement        reporting, i.e., logarithmic filtering for logarithmic        measurements.    -   NOTE 4: The filter input rate is implementation dependent, to        fulfil the performance requirements set in [16]. For further        details about the physical layer measurements, see TS 36.133        [16].

QuantityConfig The IE QuantityConfig specifies the measurementquantities and layer 3 filtering coefficients for NR and inter-RATmeasurements. QuantityConfig information element -- ASN1STARTQuantityConfig ::= SEQUENCE { quantityConfigNR QuantityConfigNROPTIONAL, -- Need ON QuantityConfigNR::= SEQUENCE { quantityConfigCellQuantityConfigRS quantityConfigBeam QuantityConfigRS OPTIONAL, }QuantityConfigRS ::= SEQUENCE { // SS Block basedssbFilterCoefficientRSRP FilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4,ssbFilterCoefficientRSRQ FilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4,ssbFilterCoefficientRS-SINR FilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4, // CSI-RSbased csi-rsFilterCoefficientRSRP FilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4,csi-rsFilterCoefficientRSRQ FilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4,csi-rsFilterCoefficientRS-SINR FilterCoefficient DEFAULT fc4, } . . . --ASN1STOP

Another possible way to capture these in the RRC specifications, asshown in below, is by separating the functions for SS Block basedmeasurement results (for both cell and beam level) and CSI-RS basedmeasurement results (for both cell and beam level). One way to encodethat in the RRC specifications is by defining the quantityConfig IE perRS Type and, for each RS type, define cell level and beam levelcoefficients for each measurement quantity, e.g., RSRP, RSRQ and SINR.That is shown as follows:

5.5.3.2 Layer 3 Filtering of SS Block Measurement Results

The UE shall:

-   -   1> for each measurement quantity derived based on SS Block that        the UE performs measurements according to 5.5.3.1:        -   2> filter the measured result, before using for evaluation            of reporting criteria or for measurement reporting, by the            following formula:

F _(n)=(1−a)·F _(n−1) +a·M _(n)

-   -   -   where            -   M_(n) is the latest received measurement result from the                physical layer (in the case of beam measurement results)                or beam consolidation function (in the case of cell                measurement results);            -   F_(n) is the updated filtered measurement result, that                is used for evaluation of reporting criteria (in the                case of cell measurement results) or for measurement                reporting (in the case of cell and beam measurement                results);            -   F_(n−1) is the old filtered measurement result, where F₀                is set to M₁ when the first measurement result from the                physical layer or beam consolidation function is                received; and            -   a=1/2^((k/4)), where k is the filterCoefficient for the                corresponding measurement quantity received by the                quantityConfig. There can be different parameter k for                cell measurement results and beam measurements results.            -   2> adapt the filter such that the time characteristics                of the filter are preserved at different input rates,                observing that the filterCoefficient k assumes a sample                rate equal to 200 ms;

    -   NOTE 2: If k is set to 0, no layer 3 filtering is applicable.

    -   NOTE 3: The filtering is performed in the same domain as used        for evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement        reporting, i.e., logarithmic filtering for logarithmic        measurements.

    -   NOTE 4: The filter input rate is implementation dependent, to        fulfil the performance requirements set in [16]. For further        details about the physical layer measurements, see TS 36.133        [16].”

    -   NOTE 5: There can be different parameter k for cell measurement        results and beam measurements results.

5.5.3.2 Layer 3 Filtering of CSI-RS Measurement Results

The UE shall:

-   -   1> for each measurement quantity derived based on CSI-RS that        the UE performs measurements according to 5.5.3.1:        -   2> filter the measured result, before using for evaluation            of reporting criteria or for measurement reporting, by the            following formula:

F _(n)=(1−a)·F _(n−1) +a·M _(n)

-   -   where    -   M_(n) is the latest received measurement result from the        physical layer (in the case of beam measurement results) or beam        consolidation function (in the case of cell measurement        results);    -   F_(n) is the updated filtered measurement result, that is used        for evaluation of reporting criteria (in the case of cell        measurement results) or for measurement reporting (in the case        of cell and beam measurement results);    -   F_(n−1) is the old filtered measurement result, where F₀ is set        to M₁ when the first measurement result from the physical layer        or beam consolidation function is received; and    -   a=1/2^((k/4)), where k is the filterCoefficient for the        corresponding measurement quantity received by the        quantityConfig. There can be different parameter k for cell        measurement results and beam measurements results.        -   2> adapt the filter such that the time characteristics of            the filter are preserved at different input rates, observing            that the filterCoefficient k assumes a sample rate equal to            200 ms;    -   NOTE 2: If k is set to 0, no layer 3 filtering is applicable.    -   NOTE 3: The filtering is performed in the same domain as used        for evaluation of reporting criteria or for measurement        reporting, i.e., logarithmic filtering for logarithmic        measurements.    -   NOTE 4: The filter input rate is implementation dependent, to        fulfil the performance requirements set in [16]. For further        details about the physical layer measurements, see TS 36.133        [16].”    -   NOTE 5: There can be different parameter k for cell measurement        results and beam measurements results.

The IE Quantity Config Specifies the Measurement Quantities and Layer 3Filtering Coefficients for NR and Inter-RAT Measurements.

Quantity Config Information Element

QuantityConfig information element -- ASN1START QuantityConfig ::=SEQUENCE { quantityConfigNR QuantityConfigNR OPTIONAL, -- Need ONQuantityConfigNR::= SEQUENCE { quantityConfigSS QuantityConfigRSquantityConfigCSI-RS QuantityConfigRS } QuantityConfigRS ::= SEQUENCE {// L3 filter cell level cellLevelFilterCoefficientRSRPFiltercoefficient  DEFAULT fc4, cellLevelfilterCoefficientRSRQFilterCoefficient  DEFAULT fc4, cellLevelFilterCoefficientRS-SINRFilterCoefficient  DEFAULT fc4 // L3 filter beam levelbeamLevelfilterCoefficientRSRP FilterCoefficient  DEFAULT fc4,beamLevelfilterCoefficientRSRQ FilterCoefficient  DEFAULT fc4,beamLevelfilterCoefficientRS-SINR FilterCoefficient  DEFAULT fc4, } . .. -- ASN1STOP

In a fifth embodiment, the UE can be configured to perform L types ofmeasurements with L different filtering configurations. Thesemeasurements can be for the same RS type and same level. For example,the network can configure the UE to perform CSI-RS based beam-levelmeasurements with a given filtering configuration a (with longer memory)and another filtering configuration a (with shorter memory). In anotherexample, the network can configure the UE to perform SS Block basedbeam-level measurements with a given filtering configuration a (withlonger memory) and another filtering configuration a (with shortermemory). In another example, the network can configure the UE to performSS Block based cell-level measurements with a given filteringconfiguration a (with longer memory) and another filtering configurationa (with shorter memory). In another example, the network can configurethe UE to perform CSI-RS based cell-level measurements with a givenfiltering configuration a (with longer memory) and another filteringconfiguration a (with shorter memory).

The method may also include the UE reporting these measurements withsome indication that they are associated with their filteringconfigurations. One way to realize this flexibility could be to enablethe network to configure the UE with multiple quantityConfig IEs perRAT, where each could be possibly associated to a measurement ID.Another possibility is to have the quantityConfig serve as an IE of thereportConfig instead of the measConfig.

In another embodiment, the network can indicate implicitly or explicitlywhether the filter configurations are the same or different compared toa reference filter configuration (e.g., filter configuration for aspecific type of measurements or signals or frequency may be consideredas a reference). An implicit indication may be, for example, when thefiltering configurations are different, they are provided by the networknode. Otherwise, they can be assumed by the UE to be the same as areference.

In yet another embodiment, two different filtering configurations areconfigured when the two measurements or the signals used for themeasurements are characterized by one or more of: differentnumerologies, the difference in subcarrier spacing is above a threshold,the difference in the two carrier frequencies is above a threshold, thedifference in periodicity of signals is above a threshold, thedifference in bandwidths is above a threshold, at least one of thebandwidths is above a threshold, or the difference in sampling rate isabove a threshold. Otherwise, the filtering configurations can be thesame.

In yet another embodiment, a cell-level measurement based on one or morebeam measurements has a different filtering configuration than that forthe beam measurements used to determine the cell-level measurement whenone or more conditions are met. This may include, for example, theperiodicity of obtaining the cell-level measurement is different (e.g.,less frequent) than obtaining the beam measurement and/or the number ofbeams is above a threshold. This may also include the difference betweentwo or more beam measurements used to determine the cell-levelmeasurement is above a threshold (e.g., RSRP of beam #1 is −70 dBm, RSRPof beam #2 is −110 dBm, so in this case the cell-level measurement mayhave a different filtering configuration than the filteringconfiguration of at least one of the two beams; RSRP of beam #1 is −70dBm, RSRP of beam #2 is −90 dBm, so the cell-level measurement filteringconfiguration may be the same as for beam measurements). This mayinclude the threshold for selecting beam measurements for determiningcell-level measurement is below a threshold.

When the rules are known to the UE (e.g., pre-defined or indicated tothe UE by a network node), then the UE determines at least one set offiltering configuration parameters (e.g., for a certain type ofmeasurement) or at least a subset of filtering configuration parametersbased on the determined rules (e.g., k1 is signaled while k2 isdetermined based on a rule, and both k1 and k2 are used to configurefiltering function f(k1, k2) for a UE measurement).

In yet another embodiment, the filtering configuration (e.g.,coefficient of Layer 3 filter) parameter for beam-level measurements maydepend on the beam configuration (e.g., number of beams to be measured,number of SS blocks within the SS burst, etc.) of the beams on which theUE is expected to perform a beam level radio measurement. The relationbetween the filtering coefficient (K) and number of SS blocks per SSburst (L) can be based on any of: implementation in the network node(e.g., gNB, BS, etc.) when configuring the UE with the filteringparameters; a predefined rule; or a function or rule can be signaled tothe UE.

An example of such a rule (which can be implemented, pre-defined, orconfigured) is K=f(K_(b), L), where K_(b)=reference coefficient value.Examples of functions are max, min, multiply, etc. In one specificexample of the rule, K=K_(b)*L. In another example of the rule, thefiltering coefficient (K) can be larger when larger number (L) of SSblocks are transmitted in the SS burst set or vice versa, e.g., K=8 andK=16 for L=4 and L=16 respectively. This enables the UE to perform moretime domain averaging of signals when larger number of beams aretransmitted by the network node. Because in this case (when there aremore beams), the beams are narrower. Therefore, more time averaging isachieved by a larger value of K, which enhances the reliability of themeasurement performed on beams. The enhancement in the reliability ofthe measurement results lead to more accurate execution of procedures(e.g., beam change, cell quality estimation, scheduling, power control,etc.) which rely on such measurements.

Another set of embodiments can be considered as more closely related tothe configuration of RLM measurements used as inputs to RLF control,which includes such things as the triggering of an RLF timer, thestopping of the RLF timer, direct triggering of RLF, etc. It should beunderstood, however, that one or more of these embodiments may overlapand/or complement the embodiments described above.

In one embodiment, there is a parameter differentiation for RLM done ona single-beam configuration versus multi-beam configuration. Accordingto that, the UE is configured with at least two sets of parametersassociated with higher layer filtering used for time domain filteringthe radio link quality estimated by the UE for the purpose of radio linkmonitoring: one set of such parameters are used for RLM done on singlebeam on a first type of reference signal (RS1) (e.g., RS1=CSI-RS) andanother set of such parameters are used for RLM done on multiple beams(e.g., multi-beam RLM) on RS1. For example, the UE is configured with: afirst set of parameters (N11 and N12) which are used for RLM based onsingle beam using RS1 and a second set of parameters (N11′ and N12′)which are used for RLM based on multiple beams using RS1. In anotherexample, the UE is configured with: a third set of parameters (N21 andN22) which are used for RLM based on single beam using a second type ofreference signal (RS2) and a fourth set of parameters (N21′ and N22′)which are used for RLM based on multiple beams using RS2. An example ofRS2 is signals in SS blocks (e.g., SSS) according to another aspect theparameters N11′, N12′, N21′ and N22′ are further dependent on the beamconfiguration such as the number of beams used for RLM or the number ofSS blocks within the SS burst set.

According to yet another embodiment, the UE is configured by the networknode with at least two sets of parameters associated with higher layerfiltering (e.g., time domain layer-3 filtering, etc.) used for timedomain filtering the radio link quality estimated by the UE for thepurpose of radio link monitoring using the same type of the referencesignal. One set of the filtering parameters may be used by the UE forperforming the RLM on single beam by estimating the DL radio linkquality (e.g., signal quality such as SNR, SINR, etc.) using a certaintype of reference signal (e.g., RSx). Another set of the filteringparameters may be used by the UE for performing the RLM on multiplebeams (e.g., multi-beam RLM) also using RSx.

In multi-beam RLM the UE estimates the downlink signal quality of allthe beams configured for doing RLM. Examples of RSx are CSI-RS, SSS,demodulation reference signal (DMRS), etc. The UE may further beconfigured with different sets of parameters for doing RLM for differenttypes of reference signals. The second set of the parameters in theabove case can further be associated with beam configurations. Forexample, the values of the parameters may linearly or non-linearly scalewith the number of beams. These aspects are described below with a fewexamples below.

In one example, the UE can be configured by the network node with afirst set of filtering parameters (e.g., N11 and N12) that are used bythe UE for doing RLM based on single beam using a first set of referencesignals (RS1). The parameters N11 and N12 are used for filtering thedownlink signal quality used for out-of-sync detection and in-syncdetection respectively in single-beam based RLM. For example, the UEstarts the radio link failure timer (e.g., T310) when N11 consecutiveout-of-sync indications are detected by the UE, and this timer isstopped when N12 consecutive in-sync indications are detected by the UE.A second set of parameters (N11′ and N12′) may be used by the UE fordoing RLM based on multiple beams using RS1. The parameters N11′ andN12′ are used for filtering downlink signal quality used for out-of-syncdetection and in-sync detection respectively in multi-beam based RLM.For example, the UE starts the radio link failure timer (e.g., T310)when N11′ consecutive out-of-sync indications are detected by the UE,and this timer is stopped when N12′ consecutive in-sync indications aredetected by the UE.

In another example, the UE can be configured by the network node with athird set of parameters (N21 and N22) that are used by the UE for doingRLM based on single beam using a second type of reference signal (RS2).The parameters N21 and N22 are used for filtering downlink signalquality used for out-of-sync detection and in-sync detectionrespectively in single-beam based RLM. For example, the UE starts theradio link failure timer (e.g., T310) when N21 consecutive out-of-syncindications are detected by the UE, and this timer is stopped when N22consecutive in-sync indications are detected by the UE. A fourth set ofparameters (N21′ and N22′) may be are used for RLM based on multiplebeams using RS2. The parameters N21′ and N22′ are used for filtering DLsignal quality used for out-of-sync detection and in-sync detectionrespectively in multi-beam based RLM. For example, the UE starts theradio link failure timer (e.g., T310) when N21′ consecutive out-of-syncindications are detected by the UE, and this timer is stopped when N22′consecutive in-sync indications are detected by the UE. An example ofRS1 is CSI-RS. An example of RS2 is signals in SS blocks, e.g., SSS,etc.

According to another aspect of this embodiment, the filtering parameters(e.g., N11′, N12′, N21′ and N22′) used for filtering the estimatedsignal quality for RLM in multi-beam RLM are further associated with thebeam configuration of the beams used for doing RLM. The association canbe any of: pre-defined, implementation in the network node andconfigured by the network node in the UE. Examples of beam configurationparameters are number of beams used for RLM, number of SS blocks withinthe SS burst set etc. For example, if the number (P) of beams (e.g., SSblocks) used for multi-beam RLM based on SS block signal is abovecertain beam threshold then the value of the associated filteringparameter (e.g., N21′ and/or N22′) is above certain filtering threshold(G) otherwise the value of the associated filtering parameter is equalto or below G. For example, if P=4 then N21′ and N22′ are 2 and 4respectively. But, if P=8 then N21′ and N22′ are 4 and 8 respectively.

In the previously described embodiments, another RLF related parameterthat could be configured with similar level of granularity is the RLFtimer, expressed in some of the previous examples as T310. In that case,there can be different values for single beam and multi-beam scenarios.There can be different values depending on the beamformingconfiguration. There can be different values for different RS types thatare configured, e.g., a long value for SS Block based RLM compared toCSI-RS based RLM.

In the multi-beam case, one aspect may be the trigger conditions forevents that output, e.g., out-of-sync indication. For a single beamcase, it is, for example, the 2% hypothetical BLER. In multi-beam casesthere are more options. A first option is for all beams that a UEfollows fall below 2% hypothetical BLER (or other single-beamthreshold). A second option is an event for counting one count towardsN21′ a configured number out of all followed beams fall below “asingle-beam threshold”. A third option is an event for counting onecount towards N21′ a configured number V out of all followed beams areabove “a single-beam threshold” but rest are below. For example, thetotal number of followed beams is P=7. In the third option, a counttowards N21′ happens if the UE only sees V=2 beams above the configuredsingle-beam threshold T′. V is sort of a safe margin to monitor the UEas it still sees at least V beams. If the UE is simultaneouslyconfigured with N21 and N22 (single-beam configuration), the UE wouldtrigger a count towards N21 when the last beam is below a single-beamthreshold T. Note that T′ and T may have the same or different value,such as the same or different percentage hypothetical BLER.

The network can configure the UE to trigger RLF based on the maximumnumber of beam recovery attempts. In one embodiment, this maximum numberof beam failure recovery attempts before RLF is declared can beconfigured separately, i.e., differently for beam recovery based onCSI-RS and SS Block.

In accordance with some of the embodiments described above, FIG. 3illustrates a block diagram of a wireless device 50, according to someembodiments. The wireless device 50 may be a UE, a radio communicationdevice, target device (device targeted for communication),device-to-device (D2D) UE, machine type UE or UE capable ofmachine-to-machine (M2M), a sensor equipped with UE, iPAD device,tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, LEE, LME, USB dongles, CPE, etc.

The wireless device 50 communicates with one or more nodes, via antennas54 and transceiver circuitry 56. The transceiver circuitry 56 mayinclude transmitter circuits, receiver circuits, and associated controlcircuits that are collectively configured to transmit and receivesignals according to a radio access technology, for the purposes ofproviding cellular communication services. According to variousembodiments, cellular communication services may be operated accordingto, for example, NR standards.

The wireless device 50 includes processing circuitry 52 that isoperatively associated with the transceiver circuitry 56. The processingcircuitry 52 comprises one or more digital processing circuits, e.g.,one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, Digital Signal Processors(DSPs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), Complex ProgrammableLogic Devices (CPLDs), Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs),or any mix thereof. More generally, the processing circuitry 52 maycomprise fixed circuitry, or programmable circuitry that is speciallyadapted via the execution of program instructions implementing thefunctionality taught herein, or may comprise some mix of fixed andprogrammed circuitry. The processing circuitry 52 may be multi-core.

The processing circuitry 52 also includes a memory 64. The memory 64, insome embodiments, stores one or more computer programs 66 and,optionally, configuration data 68. The memory 64 provides non-transitorystorage for the computer program 66 and it may comprise one or moretypes of computer-readable media, such as disk storage, solid-statememory storage, or any mix thereof. Here, “non-transitory” meanspermanent, semi-permanent, or at least temporarily persistent storageand encompasses both long-term storage in non-volatile memory andstorage in working memory, e.g., for program execution. By way ofnon-limiting example, the memory 64 comprises any one or more of SRAM,DRAM, EEPROM, and FLASH memory, which may be in the processing circuitry52 and/or separate from processing circuitry 52. The memory 64 may alsostore any configuration data 68 used by the wireless device 50.

In some embodiments, the processor 62 of the processing circuitry 52 mayexecute a computer program 66 stored in the memory 64 that configuresthe processor 62 to perform measurements for RRM and/or RLM. Theprocessing circuitry 52 may be configured to perform a plurality ofradio measurements. The processing circuitry 52 may also be configuredto filter at least a first subset of the radio measurements using afirst filtering configuration and filter at least a second subset of theradio measurements using a second filtering configuration, where thesecond filtering configuration differs from the first filteringconfiguration. The first and second filtering configurations apply tofirst and second different types of reference signals, respectively, orto beam-level measurements and cell-level measurements, respectively.

In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 52 is configured toperform a corresponding method of performing measurements for RRM and/orRLM, such as method 400 illustrated by FIG. 4. The method 400 includesperforming a plurality of radio measurements (block 402), filtering atleast a first subset of the radio measurements using a first filteringconfiguration (block 404) and filtering at least a second subset of theradio measurements using a second filtering configuration, (block 406),where the second filtering configuration differs from the firstfiltering configuration. The method 400 may further include performingLayer 1 filtering of measured radio samples to obtain the plurality ofradio measurements.

The filtering using the first filtering configuration and the filteringusing the second filtering configuration may each comprise Layer 3filtering. The first and second filtering configurations may differ withrespect to at least an averaging parameter.

The Layer 3 filtering for at least one of the filtering using the firstfiltering configuration and the filtering using the second filteringconfiguration may produce filtered cell-specific quality measurements.The method 400 may further include performing beam consolidation andselection, based on beam-specific radio measurements, prior to Layer 3filtering of cell-specific quality measurements. The Layer 3 filteringfor at least one of the filtering using the first filteringconfiguration and the filtering using the second filtering configurationmay also produce filtered beam-specific quality measurements.

In some cases, the filtering using the first filtering configuration andthe filtering using the second filtering configuration each comprisefiltering for evaluating RLF. In these cases, the first and secondfiltering configurations may differ with respect to at least one of: anumber of consecutive out-of-sync indications that trigger a start of aRLF timer; a number of consecutive in-sync indications that stop arunning RLF timer; an RLF timer duration; and a maximum number of beamfailure recovery attempts that trigger declaration of RLF or start of anRLF timer.

The first and second different types of reference signals may be aCSI-RS and a synchronization signal in a synchronization signal block,respectively. The method 400 may also include receiving signalingindicating at least one parameter of at least one of the first andsecond filtering configurations.

In some cases, at least one parameter of at least one of the first andsecond filtering configurations depends on at least one of: aperiodicity of obtaining cell-level measurements or a periodicity ofobtaining beam-level measurements, or both; a number of beams beingmeasured; a difference in measurement value between two or more beammeasurements used to determine a cell-level measurement; and a number ofsynchronization signal blocks with a synchronization signal burst.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of the network node 30, according to someembodiments. The network node 30 may be a radio access network node thatfacilitates communication between UEs and the core network. In using thegeneric terminology of “radio access network node,” a radio accessnetwork node can be a base station, radio base station, base transceiverstation, base station controller, network controller, evolved Node B(eNB), Node B, relay node, access point, radio access point, RemoteRadio Unit (RRU) or Remote Radio Head (RRH). In the case where thetransmitting device is a radio access network node, the radio accessnetwork node may include a communication interface circuit 38 thatincludes circuitry for communicating with other nodes in the corenetwork, radio nodes, and/or other types of nodes in the network for thepurposes of providing data and cellular communication services.

The network node 30 communicates with other devices via antennas 34 andtransceiver circuitry 36. The transceiver circuitry 36 may includetransmitter circuits, receiver circuits, and associated control circuitsthat are collectively configured to transmit and receive signalsaccording to a radio access technology, for the purposes of providingcellular communication services. According to various embodiments,cellular communication services may be operated according to any one ormore of the 3GPP cellular standards, including NR.

The network node 30 also includes one or more processing circuits 32that are operatively associated with the transceiver circuitry 36 tocommunicate with other devices and, in some cases, operativelyassociated with the communication interface circuit 38 to communicatewith network nodes. The communication may include multi-carrieroperations. The term “multi-carrier” may involve similar terms such as“multi-carrier system”, “multi-cell operation”, “multi-carrieroperation”, and “multi-carrier” transmission and/or reception.Multi-carrier operation may also be considered to involve CA.

For ease of discussion, the one or more processing circuits 32 arereferred to hereafter as “the processing circuitry 32.” The processingcircuitry 32 comprises one or more digital processors 42, e.g., one ormore microprocessors, microcontrollers, DSPs, FPGAs, CPLDs, ASICs, orany mix thereof. More generally, the processing circuitry 32 maycomprise fixed circuitry, or programmable circuitry that is speciallyconfigured via the execution of program instructions implementing thefunctionality taught herein, or may comprise some mix of fixed andprogrammed circuitry. The processor 42 may be multi-core having two ormore processor cores utilized for enhanced performance, reduced powerconsumption, and more efficient simultaneous processing of multipletasks.

The processing circuitry 32 also includes a memory 44. The memory 44, insome embodiments, stores one or more computer programs 46 and,optionally, configuration data 48. The memory 44 provides non-transitorystorage for the computer program 46 and it may comprise one or moretypes of computer-readable media, such as disk storage, solid-statememory storage, or any mix thereof. By way of non-limiting example, thememory 44 comprises any one or more of SRAM, DRAM, EEPROM, and FLASHmemory, which may be in the processing circuitry 32 and/or separate fromthe processing circuitry 32.

In some embodiments, the processor 42 of the processing circuitry 32executes a computer program 46 stored in the memory 44 that configuresthe processor 42 to facilitate measurements for RRM and/or RLM. Theprocessing circuitry 32 is configured to send, to a wireless device,information indicating a first filtering configuration for RRM and/orRLM and a second filtering configuration for RRM and/or RLM, where thesecond filtering configuration differs from the first filteringconfiguration. The first and second filtering configurations apply tofirst and second different types of reference signals, respectively, orto beam-level measurements and cell-level measurements, respectively.

In some embodiments, the processing circuitry 32 is configured toperform a corresponding method for facilitating measurements for RRMand/or RLM, such as method 600 illustrated by FIG. 6. The method 600includes sending, to a wireless device, information indicating a firstfiltering configuration for RRM and/or RLM and a second filteringconfiguration for RRM and/or RLM, the second filtering configurationdiffering from the first filtering configuration (block 602).

The first and second filtering configurations may differ with respect toat least an averaging parameter for Layer 3 filtering. The first andsecond filtering configurations may also relate to filtering forevaluating RLF.

In some cases, the first and second filtering configurations differ withrespect to at least one of: a number of consecutive out-of-syncindications that trigger a start of a RLF timer; a number of consecutivein-sync indications that stop a running RLF timer; an RLF timerduration; and a maximum number of beam failure recovery attempts thattrigger declaration of RLF or start of an RLF timer.

The first and second different types of reference signals may be aCSI-RS and a synchronization signal in a synchronization signal block,respectively.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example functional module or circuit architectureas may be implemented in a wireless device 50. The illustratedembodiment at least functionally includes a measuring module 702 forperforming a plurality of radio measurements, a first filtering module704 for filtering at least a first subset of the radio measurementsusing a first filtering configuration, and a second filtering module 706for filtering at least a second subset of the radio measurements using asecond filtering configuration, where the second filtering configurationdiffering from the first filtering configuration. The first and secondfiltering configurations apply to first and second different types ofreference signals, respectively, or to beam-level measurements andcell-level measurements, respectively.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example functional module or circuit architectureas may be implemented in a network node 30. The illustrated embodimentat least functionally includes a sending module 802 for sending, to awireless device, information indicating a first filtering configurationfor RRM and/or RLM and a second filtering configuration for RRM and/orRLM, where the second filtering configuration differs from the firstfiltering configuration. The first and second filtering configurationsapply to first and second different types of reference signals,respectively, or to beam-level measurements and cell-level measurements,respectively.

Notably, modifications and other embodiments of the disclosedinvention(s) will come to mind to one skilled in the art having thebenefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and theassociated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that theinvention(s) is/are not to be limited to the specific embodimentsdisclosed and that modifications and other embodiments are intended tobe included within the scope of this disclosure. Although specific termsmay be employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive senseonly and not for purposes of limitation.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method in a wireless device, the methodcomprising: performing a plurality of radio measurements; filtering atleast a first subset of the radio measurements using a first filteringconfiguration; and filtering at least a second subset of the radiomeasurements using a second filtering configuration, the secondfiltering configuration differing from the first filteringconfiguration; wherein the first and second filtering configurationsapply to first and second different types of reference signals,respectively, and wherein the filtering using the first filteringconfiguration and the filtering using the second filtering configurationeach comprise Layer 3 filtering.
 2. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising performing Layer 1 filtering of measured radio samples toobtain the plurality of radio measurements.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein the first and second filtering configurations differ withrespect to at least an averaging parameter.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein the Layer 3 filtering for at least one of the filtering usingthe first filtering configuration and the filtering using the secondfiltering configuration produces filtered cell-specific qualitymeasurements.
 5. The method of claim 4, further comprising performingbeam consolidation and selection, based on beam-specific radiomeasurements, prior to Layer 3 filtering of cell-specific qualitymeasurements.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the Layer 3 filteringfor at least one of the filtering using the first filteringconfiguration and the filtering using the second filtering configurationproduces filtered beam-specific quality measurements.
 7. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the filtering using the first filtering configurationand the filtering using the second filtering configuration each comprisefiltering for evaluating radio-link failure (RLF).
 8. The method ofclaim 7, wherein the first and second filtering configurations differwith respect to at least one of: a number of consecutive out-of-syncindications that trigger a start of a RLF timer; a number of consecutivein-sync indications that stop a running RLF timer; an RLF timerduration; and a maximum number of beam failure recovery attempts thattrigger declaration of RLF or start of an RLF timer.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the first and second different types of referencesignals are channel-state information reference signals (CSI-RS) and asynchronization signal in a synchronization signal block, respectively.10. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving signalingindicating at least one parameter of at least one of the first andsecond filtering configurations.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein atleast one parameter of at least one of the first and second filteringconfigurations depends on at least one of: a periodicity of obtainingcell-level measurements or a periodicity of obtaining beam-levelmeasurements, or both; a number of beams being measured; a difference inmeasurement value between two or more beam measurements used todetermine a cell-level measurement; and a number of synchronizationsignal blocks with a synchronization signal burst.
 12. A method in anetwork node, the method comprising: sending, to a wireless device,information indicating a first filtering configuration for radioresource management (RRM) and a second filtering configuration for RRM,the second filtering configuration differing from the first filteringconfiguration; wherein the first and second filtering configurationsapply to first and second different types of reference signals,respectively, and wherein the first and second filtering configurationsare each for Layer 3 filtering.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein thefirst and second filtering configurations differ with respect to atleast an averaging parameter for Layer 3 filtering.
 14. The method ofclaim 12, wherein the first and second filtering configurations relateto filtering for evaluating radio-link failure (RLF).
 15. The method ofclaim 14, wherein the first and second filtering configurations differwith respect to at least one of: a number of consecutive out-of-syncindications that trigger a start of a RLF timer; a number of consecutivein-sync indications that stop a running RLF timer; an RLF timerduration; and a maximum number of beam failure recovery attempts thattrigger declaration of RLF or start of an RLF timer.
 16. The method ofclaim 12, wherein the first and second different types of referencesignals are channel-state information reference signals (CSI-RS) and asynchronization signal in a synchronization signal block, respectively.17. A wireless device, comprising: transceiver circuitry configured totransmit and receive radio signals; and processing circuitry operativelyassociated with the transceiver circuitry and configured to: perform aplurality of radio measurements; filter at least a first subset of theradio measurements using a first filtering configuration; and filter atleast a second subset of the radio measurements using a second filteringconfiguration, the second filtering configuration differing from thefirst filtering configuration; wherein the first and second filteringconfigurations apply to first and second different types of referencesignals, respectively, and wherein the filtering using the firstfiltering configuration and the filtering using the second filteringconfiguration each comprise Layer 3 filtering.
 18. The wireless deviceof claim 17, wherein the processing circuitry is configured to performLayer 1 filtering of measured radio samples to obtain the plurality ofradio measurements.
 19. The wireless device of claim 17, wherein thefirst and second filtering configurations differ with respect to atleast an averaging parameter.
 20. The wireless device of claim 17,wherein the Layer 3 filtering for at least one of the filtering usingthe first filtering configuration and the filtering using the secondfiltering configuration produces filtered cell-specific qualitymeasurements, and wherein the processing circuitry is configured toperform beam consolidation and selection, based on beam-specific radiomeasurements, prior to Layer 3 filtering of cell-specific qualitymeasurements.
 21. The wireless device of claim 17, wherein the Layer 3filtering for at least one of the filtering using the first filteringconfiguration and the filtering using the second filtering configurationproduces filtered beam-specific quality measurements.
 22. The wirelessdevice of claim 17, wherein the processing circuitry is configured tofilter using the first filtering configuration and the filter using thesecond filtering configuration, wherein each comprise filtering forevaluating radio-link failure (RLF).
 23. The wireless device of claim22, wherein the first and second filtering configurations differ withrespect to at least one of: a number of consecutive out-of-syncindications that trigger a start of a RLF timer; a number of consecutivein-sync indications that stop a running RLF timer; an RLF timerduration; and a maximum number of beam failure recovery attempts thattrigger declaration of RLF or start of an RLF timer.
 24. The wirelessdevice of claim 17, wherein the first and second different types ofreference signals are channel-state information reference signals(CSI-RS) and a synchronization signal in a synchronization signal block,respectively.
 25. The wireless device of claim 17, wherein at least oneparameter of at least one of the first and second filteringconfigurations depends on at least one of: a periodicity of obtainingcell-level measurements or a periodicity of obtaining beam-levelmeasurements, or both; a number of beams being measured; a difference inmeasurement value between two or more beam measurements used todetermine a cell-level measurement; and a number of synchronizationsignal blocks with a synchronization signal burst.
 26. A network node,comprising: transceiver circuitry configured to communicate with awireless device; and processing circuitry operatively associated withthe transceiver circuitry and configured to: send, to the wirelessdevice via the transceiver circuitry, information indicating a firstfiltering configuration for radio resource management (RRM) and a secondfiltering configuration for RRM, the second filtering configurationdiffering from the first filtering configuration; wherein the first andsecond filtering configurations apply to first and second differenttypes of reference signals, respectively, and wherein the first andsecond filtering configurations are each for Layer 3 filtering.
 27. Thenetwork node of claim 26, wherein the first and second filteringconfigurations differ with respect to at least an averaging parameterfor Layer 3 filtering.
 28. The network node of claim 26, wherein thefirst and second filtering configurations relate to filtering forevaluating radio-link failure (RLF) and wherein the first and secondfiltering configurations differ with respect to at least one of: anumber of consecutive out-of-sync indications that trigger a start of anRLF timer; a number of consecutive in-sync indications that stop arunning RLF timer; an RLF timer duration; and a maximum number of beamfailure recovery attempts that trigger declaration of RLF or start of anRLF timer.